There are ways of making your bike go faster for the same effort, all without having to blow your budget. And after all that preparation, you deserve all the gains you can get. With this in mind, we asked our friends at Bikes + Life to identify the four biggest speed-enhancing tweaks that can be made to a bike before a race, particularly an IRONMAN. Here they are in order of value for money.

Fresh rubber

A new set of tires offer one of the greatest improvements in speed, handling, and safety of any item you can replace or upgrade on your bike without breaking the bank. Your bike will feel instantly faster, grippier, and more responsive on high-quality tires. Not all tires are created equal, however. Bikes + Life recommends two brands for the IRONMAN triathlete: Continental and Vittoria. More specifically, two models from each brand.

The most popular and most highly recommended tire is the Continental GP4000 II, legendary for their grip, speed and puncture resistance. That is, fast, safe and trouble-free.

Although perhaps not as durable, for a speed boost you can go with the Vittoria Corsa Comp. Vittorias are ultralight, fast, and provide a better quality of ride. The higher performance of these tires over 112 miles (180 km) can significantly reduce your time on the road and leave you fresher for the run.

Light, fast wheels

Tires may be the last word in overall performance for a bike that’s already well set up but let’s go down another layer and look at the wheels themselves. Even a mediocre bike can be transformed by great wheels. By the same token, even a dream bike with lame wheels can feel like a tank.

"If it weren’t for the higher cost of wheels versus tires, wheels would be our number-one performance recommendation," says Bikes + Life’s Peter Yuskauskas. "A set of light and reactive carbon wheels can transform your average bike into a super bike."

It’s important to remember though that the ideal wheel varies depending on the rider and the race. On a flat and open course, a heavier and more powerful rider will reap big benefits from a rear disc wheel because of the savings in aerodynamic efficiency, especially against a stiff wind.

However, the same wheel could be dangerous for lighter riders as it will act like a sail and push them around. The stress to the body and mind from having to fight to stay on the road will counteract any aerodynamic benefit. And on a hilly course, the benefit of a disc wheel is minimal compared to the substantial saving in weight from a set of light, climbing-oriented wheels.

So when it comes to wheel choice, the team advises athletes to think about their build, training terrain, and the races they're targeting before making an investment. To put it bluntly, the right wheels will give you huge gains in speed while the wrong ones could act like an anchor.

Push-button shifting

Long training rides and races that push you to the limit take more out of your body than you might think. Think of the hundreds of hand movements required to shift gears, especially on a hilly course. Inevitably, your hands will become fatigued. They may even begin to hurt or become numb—it happens to pros and amateurs alike. This is especially true of riders with smaller hands or those with a weaker grip. Regardless of the origin of the fatigue, it all adds up on a long day.

Moreover, mechanical gears can malfunction. Even when they’re only slightly off, misfiring gears will compromise your performance. This happens more often than most triathletes think. Cables that control mechanical gears move through many feet of housing (little tubes that route through the frame) before they finally reach the gears. Every little bend, kink, and corner they traverse creates friction. Eventually, that friction wears things down and the shifting becomes sloppy. Worse, the cables can deteriorate to the point where shifting will slow or stop completely.

The solution? Swap those old mechanical controls for electronic. The entire drivetrain responds at the touch of a button. Bikes + Life says they find that cyclists quickly fall in love with electronic shifting and never go back.

All the major component manufacturers offer an electronic shifting solution, but the techs at Bikes + Life prefer Shimano Di2 (pro tip: go with Ultegra as it’s cheaper to maintain and more durable) and SRAM eTap. Both offer the rider effortless and reliable shifting that will last for hundreds and hundreds of miles on a single charge. "I charge my Di2 about every 6 months," says Yuskauskas.

A new bike

Sometimes the best speed-enhancing upgrade you can make is biting the bullet and splurging on a new bike. Surprisingly, it can actually prove cheaper in the long run. If you’re looking at upgrading your wheels and your drivetrain, not to mention your tires and other specs, the economics often suggest an entirely new mount, even a high-end one. That’s because you get a significant discount on the overall package compared with adding improvements separately.

Bewildered by choice? There’s hundreds of brands and models to choose from. To make it easier, Bikes + Life recommends you focus on three main qualities—lightness, aerodynamics, ergonomics (i.e. comfort).

And to get the best out of the new bike, always get a professional fitting. You want body and bike aligned in perfect harmony.

The take-away? Upgrade where you can. Consider buying a new bike. And whether it’s old or new, always keep your bike tuned and maintained.

Bikes and Life offers pre-booking of service work at 26 events in North America. Visit racedayservice.com to learn more.